Top 15 Exits in MENA

Investors expect to see the Dubai investor ecosystem mature in the coming months and years with a specific increase in growth-stage funds and sector-specific funds. However, as cautioned by Walid Hanna at MEVP, “We have witnessed a decrease in the valuation hype, the market has corrected, there might be a slight ‘funding winter’ as the ecosystem matures and becomes more competitive."

The VC markets in MENA have historically been less liquid than the VC markets in the U.S. or Europe, though the region has begun to produce some major exits in recent years. There has been a clear increase in the number of exits in both numbers of transactions and valuation.

Almost all the VCs we spoke to said one of their biggest concerns was exit options and how they could be improved for local startups. The main exit options exercised by Dubai-based startups to date have been through M&A. Saudi and Egypt-based startups have begun IPOs in secondary public markets, providing another viable exit opportunity.